The first step in creating any book club is to narrow your focus. If you have narrowed your focus down to the science fiction genre, you are already well on your way to creating your book club. In order to successfully create a science fiction book club, you should also determine the specific science fiction topics your club will cover. Apart from that, you must also gather members and set up club basics, such as the meeting time and place.

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Steps

Method 1 of 3: Defining Your Interests and Choosing Books

1

Stick with space-oriented sub-genres. Space is one of the most commonly explored themes in science fiction, but within the broad category of “space,” there are a number of different sub-genres for you to build your book list from. These sub-genres include alien invasions, the colonization of different worlds, first contact, galactic empires, space exploration, and space operas.

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2

Make time for time. Time travel is nearly as popular as space travel. It may be a little more difficult to find a plethora of time travel books, but you can weave one into your book list on occasion to mix things up.

3

Think of the future. The majority of science fiction books take place at some point in the future, even those books that are oriented with space or technology. For some sci-fi sub-genres, however, thinking about the future is the main point rather than merely a setting detail. Books that fall within the dystopian, human development, and pos-apocalyptic sub-genres are especially future-oriented.

4

Escape to an alternate reality. Books are a sort of escape in and of themselves, but you can offer the members of your book group an even greater sense of escape by filling your book roster with alternate reality sub-genres. Alternate realities include alternate histories and timelines, parallel dimensions, and virtual reality.

5

Be a punk. The "punk" sub-genres are fairly recent, but growing in popularity. Steampunk is the most notable "punk" sub-genre, but others, like cyberpunk, have since come into creation as well. Steampunk takes place in Victorian-esque settings but weaves fantastical steam and gear powered inventions into the story. Cyberpunk pairs cybernetic technology with a breakdown of social order.

6

Focus on technology. Technological feats are probably just as popular a theme in science fiction as space exploration. A book club focused on technology-based science fiction has a wide range of sub-genres to choose from, including artificial intelligence, nano-technology, mind uploading, and singularity—the idea of a major but short-live technological boom.

7

Determine whether you want hard sci-fi or soft sci-fi. Hard sci-fi focuses on scientific accuracy, and most hard sci-fi deals with technology. Soft sci-fi relies more heavily on sciences that are less precise, such as psychology and anthropology.

8

Mix and match sub-genres. If you only have an interest in certain types of science fiction, then you should build your club and its book roster around that interest. If, however, you have an interest in science fiction no matter what the genre is, you can spice things up by planning a book club that will cover a range of topics.

9

Branch into other speculative fiction. Sometimes the boundaries between science fiction, fantasy, and horror get blurred. For instance, some science fiction takes place in a future that has, for whatever reason, reverted back into fantasy-like sword-and-sorcery state. Similarly, some post-apocalyptic books portray a world filled with the grotesque mutants and violence common to the horror genre. You can really push the envelop by including a few books that could be classified within these other genres.

10

Compile a list of classics. If you do not know where to start, consider paying homage to the classics that helped build the science fiction genre into what it is today. The list of science fiction classics includes, but is certainly not limited to, H.G. Wells's The Time Machine and War of the Worlds, Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Isaac Asimov's I, Robot, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, George Orwell's 1984, and Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451.

11

Pull books off the bestseller list. When all else fails, pull titles off bestselling science fiction lists. Science fiction bestsellers usually consist of both recent titles and classics being turned into movies.

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Method 2 of 3: Finding Members

1

Settle on a number. A group that is too small may not have much to say, but a group that is too large may prevent some people from participating. Usually, groups that range between 5 and 15 people are a good size. Smaller groups will create a more personal atmosphere, but slightly larger groups will allow for a greater exchange of ideas and may be ideal for science fiction book clubs.

2

Contact friends and family. Ask anyone you know who likes science fiction to join your group. You can also bring it up to people who do not like sci-fi and ask them to pass word along to anyone they know who might be interested.

3

Advertise. Put posters up in your local library or create ads on free online classifieds. You can also advertise in science fiction forums online. Even though these forums already offer members the chance to discuss their favorite stories, some members may also be interested in participating in an actual book club, especially if they want to meet with local sci-fi fanatics in person.

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Method 3 of 3: Setting Up Meetings

1

Find a good meeting place. The size of your group will likely impact the space you need in a meeting place. Homes tend to work well for smaller groups, but library conference rooms and restaurants with secluded sections tend to work better for larger groups.

Alternatively, you can also meet online. If your members are scattered across a broad distance or simply prefer to interact via the computer, you can set up your own blog, e-mail list, or forum to facilitate discussion.

2

Settle on a convenient meeting time. In order to set up a time, you need to balance your members' schedules. After dinner tends to be a popular choice, since most people work during the morning and afternoon, and participants with young children can put their kids down for the night before attending. Meeting well after dinner also means that you do not need to provide a meal.

3

Figure out how often to meet. If you want to discuss your books as you read them, then you may consider meeting every one or two weeks. If you prefer to discuss the books only after you finish them, however, you may opt for meeting on a monthly basis, especially since many science fiction books are fairly long and may take that long to finish if your members have busy schedules.

4

Make use of technology. This is a science fiction book club, after all, so the odds or running into a member with a technology phobia is rare. Even if you meet offline and in person, you can still set up a blog or online forum to facilitate discussion in between meetings. You should also keep contact with your group via e-mail to inform them of any changes or other pertinent information.

5

Cover the ground rules. Stress the importance of reading the books and making the meetings. Without these two elements, your book club will completely fall apart. You should also make sure that each member knows when your club meets, how long meetings will last, and any rules surrounding the discussion of books in your club.

6

Learn how to lead. You will need to decide whether you will moderate each session or if you will take turns with other members. You should also determine whether to follow a formal set of discussion questions or if you would rather have a loose, casual conversation about the books.

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Don’t be discouraged if things do not work out too smoothly after the first meeting. Setting up a science fiction book club—or any book club, for that matter—takes time, and you may need to meet a few times before you get a good idea of how to make the club work for both you and your members.